1.Full Procedure for Steel Coils from China. Stage 1 – Preparation
(I) – Building a Strong Safety and Research Base Phase. Preliminary design is an essential element in import work itself and this is concerned about delineating policy requirements for an enterprise, selecting top-quality suppliers, and ensuring self-qualification. First, it is necessary to verify the import country’s policy and the tariff levels in the steel coils (in Vietnam anti-dumping/countervailing measures of 23.1% to 27.83% on Chinese hot-rolled steel coils are applied and the US also has a comprehensive tax rate of up to 35%, such that an importer does not cover the import rate). At the same time, its requirement has to verify Chinese export side policy requirements. Starting on 1 January 2026, China will adopt an export license management system for steel coils. Export licenses are required documents to be filed in advance so that suppliers can use them for goods. Secondly, choose to do it from Chinese suppliers. This can be done through B2B platforms like Alibaba and Made-in-China, or by participating in industry expos, such as the China International Stainless Steel Industry Exhibition, to carry out on-site inspection of suppliers’ scale, quality control programs and production capacity stability. For example, prefer foreign trade operating authority-holding manufacturers and that are able to offer a complete quality check certificate, no to cooperate with unqualified suppliers in order to reduce risk of further risks in compliance. Furthermore, importers will also be required to follow their own qualification procedures (including foreign trade operator registration, customs registration, and electronic port IC card application) for the qualifications on import customs declaration.
(II) Contract signing step: Defining Rights, Responsibilities, and Detailed Agreements. The contract is the essence document governing both sides’ rights and duties and, therefore, essential clauses need to be clearly formulated to avoid disagreements. As a product information, it indicates what material form this steel coil will be (hot-rolled/cold-rolled, ordinary carbon steel/stainless steel, etc.). states, the specifications (outer diameter, inner diameter, width and thickness), amount and quality (such as US standard ASTM, European standard EN, Japanese standard JIS, etc., accepted by import country) need to be defined clearly. The price and settlement conditions should set a price and specifies the price currency, the unit cost, the total amount, the settlement method (letter of credit, wire transfer, etc.). Logistics and delivery terms must stipulate the trade terms (e.g., FOB, CIF) explaining the responsibility for transport; delivery date should be reasonably planned in the system with the time of the supplier’s production cycle and processing of license (regular license applications generally take 3–5 working days) to prevent production postponements. In addition, the way of dispute resolution should be specified. Third-party arbitration organisation (ex: Singapore International Arbitration Centre) as a means to lower the cost of the international litigation. Suppliers should be obliged to provide the manufacturer’s quality inspection certificate on the completion of the contract, upon which the customs clearance process and quality check can be made.
(III) Transport or Logistics Stage: Safety and on time operation of Cargo Steel coils are heavy and subject to moisture and corrosion. So packaging and securing and transportation methods need to be treated with care at the logistics and transportation stage, he added. On packaging, dry containers are typically preferred for transportation. Unsealed steel coils need to be treated for rust risk and not mixed with corrosive metals. Secure operations should be based on the IMO: Code of Safe Practice for Cargo Stowage and Securing that establish this legislation and also include the use of steel wire ropes, tensioners for lateral securing and triangular wooden blocks for sealing. Multi-layer loadings: wooden support frames should be provided for the appropriate weight distribution inside ±10% of the centerline of the container. There are most of the container transport by sea. To establish the lifting capacity of cranes at the loading and unloading ports in advance. “Overweight containers” (single pieces exceeding 3 tons) such as overweight steel coils must be declared with appropriate documents. Either the importers can select a freight forwarder or can use the vendor to coordinate transport. A “Container Loading and Securing Report” and a cargo weight certificate are required for any method. Some destination ports, like in the Middle East and Africa, require a third party certification of the securing plan. Likewise, they suggest this all-risk insurance be bought along with a clear statement on how common to steel coil transport and its risks including securing failure and moisture damage.
(IV) Formative Customs Clearance Stage: Proper Declaration and Quick Clearance. Customs clearance is an essential part of the import process. A complete set of documents must be prepared in advance, and all the information transmitted must be consistent. The necessary documents are: commercial contract, commercial invoice, packing list, bill of lading, export license issued by Chinese supplier, certificate of origin (CO), which will be required for tariff preference so that cargo description and HS code are consistent with other documents in the country, material test certificate (MTC): in Chinese and English. The HS code must be correctly classified (steel coils often are in the 72.xx series) in order to prevent customs delays, penalties, incorrect coding, etc. The documents may be submitted to customs in the importing country for pre-approval prior to the entrance of goods at the port, to verify correctness of information. After arriving at the port, they are then formally declared through the importing country’s “single window” system. After customs review and approval, a tax payment notice is given. The importer must pay customs duties (the most-favored-nation tariff rate is generally 2%-6% on time) and value-added tax (usually 13%). Customs can perform such inspections through risk control, ensuring that the information is accurate – whether specifications and weight or labels of the goods are matching the declared information. They must also be inspected on-site if quality inspection is part of the job. Following inspection, customs will release the goods, and allow the importer to proceed with the pick-up operations with the release document.
(V) The Next Closing: Quality Verification and Document Retention. In addition, when the goods are received, the steel coils need to be quickly moved to their specific warehouse and stored there to avoid rust and damage. Likewise, the acceptance of quality needs to be examined by comparing the appearance, dimension, and mechanical characteristics of the steel coils with the quality inspection certificate and material report from the supplier. If the quality issues are discovered, images should be taken to maintain the evidence and a resolution should be found with the supplier. Document retention is important for future tax deductions and regulatory audits. A full set of documents, whether it be contracts, invoices, bills of lading, licenses, customs declarations or certificates of tax payment, should be stored and kept for at least 3 years. If an export license is non-one-batch-one-certificate, the number of customs clearances must be recorded, to ascertain that these confirmations have been followed through during the validity period. Moreover, we can assess the creditworthiness of the supplier through China Export & Credit Insurance Corporation (SINOSURE) in order to minimize credit risk in future long-term cooperation.
2.Importing Steel Coils from China: Key Considerations.
(I) Regulatory Compliance Risk Control. Always follow the rules of the importing country and China strictly. The country importing the goods itself should in advance examine the country it visits regarding anti-dumping measures as well as tariff barriers and environmental standards (see the EU REACH regulation and the CBAM carbon tariff to be implemented in 2026) so that they are not returned or destroyed for non-compliance after they arrive at the port. The exporting country has to establish that the supplier has legally obtained an export license to avoid having goods being arrested by Chinese customs for unlicensed exports. In a bid to make sure that the export transactions would not be a problem of such kind, the new Chinese export laws must be watched first, such as the tax department using Golden Tax Phase IV (the “Golden Tax Phase”), and it shall achieve “data-cross-verification” and concentrate on the monitoring of high-frequency export and abnormal declaration enterprises, to resist cooperating with suppliers with previous violations.
(II) Quality and Documentation Risk Management. On the quality side, the contract should outline quality criteria and acceptance of terms. In this case, it is advised to hire a third-party entity (like SGS) to inspect the goods at the Chinese factory, to ensure quality control at source, and to prevent quality problems from developing once they arrive. With regard to documentation, take care that all document information (product name, specifications, weight, HS code, etc.) is consistent, namely especially the certificate of origin and license information. Business & customs departments will verify the documents and fraudulent material will incur credit penalties. With a letter of credit for settlement, carefully review the terms to avoid having a ‘soft clause’ for bank refusal.
(III) Cost Risk Management and Logistics Management. For logistics, sign up for a company specializing in freight of steel coil transport with strong engineering experience, specify reinforcing responsibilities, and set for them to provide cargo status check services at transportation so that they will not damage their cargo causing moisture and lack of reinforcement in transit. In addition to tariffs and value-added tax, also plan for additional costs like customs clearance charges, inspection fees, demurrage charges, and calculate the total cost in advance so that long-term supply contracts could be formed, so that the risk of raw material price fluctuation can be avoided. That’s the same for transportation and customs clearance, and you can also reasonably prepare a 3-5 working day buffer for delay, so you avoid being stuck with processing costs over a longer period of time for the same as well.
(IV) The Risk Management in Long-Term Cooperation. Implement a supplier evaluation system and keep regularly verifying for them the production capacity, compliance qualifications and credit status of suppliers, especially cooperation with enterprises with green production capabilities (like “green steel” makers providing EPD environmental product declarations) for adapting global green trade trends. At the same time, broaden the variety of supplier channels to avoid over-dependence on a single supplier and minimize the risk of supply disruption caused by insufficient capacity or policy change. Also, maintain an awareness of changes in international trading environment and timely adjust the import markets and product structure to avoid import risk in the localized trade friction areas.